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Here’s the show we were all waiting for: a serious mainstream media report on naturist families!

Well, ok, maybe they weren’t exactly the average nudist family, but at least the topic got a fairly evenhanded treatment, especially considering it was sharing the bill with ‘Dr.’ Phil, an 8 year-old monster truck driver, a child bull-rider and the 7 Dwarfs! No, seriously!

6 Responses

I keep wondering where the rest of the blog entry is – I kept clicking the link thinking there must be more ;-)

I think I’m of the same mind you are Steve that the actual interview wasn’t bad though the reporter clearly was uncomfortable. To 20/20’s credit though they did quote some experts in saying that simple exposure to nudity is not harmful to children (I’m probably botching the quote). I’ve seen some complain that the reporter did not seek out the most favorable sources from the nudist apologetic but to be fair they didn’t trot out a bunch of opponents either.

I also appreciated the way the older boy was given the freedom of choice to wear clothing. If only the textile world would afford us the same freedom of choice from clothes.

I also find the timing of this to be serendipitous in light of the deafening silence surrounding an unspecified situation on the West coast. I confess some amount of frustration myself over the silence but I do understand the concept of “what you say can and will be used against you”. Even so I see know prohibition against reinforcing what is already in the public square concerning the opinions of the major nudist organizations position on “nudist family values”.

Thanks for that link to AANR’s ‘Family Values’ page. I’ve searched in vain for such a page in the past and found references to it but not the page itself (“please see our discussion of family values” – no link). I did find it just now through using the ‘search’ box; perhaps it’s part of the recent site update. It’s very good.

Regarding the ‘unmentionable topic out West’, you’re correct about the need to keep some things ‘in house’ rather than to keep the nudist/naturist community updated. Unfortunately this creates distrust and misunderstanding plus denies the leadership the combined wisdom of the community. However, those with a monetary stake in this have the most to lose, and it’s their decision as to the best course of action while the rest of us speculate. In the end, it probably won’t make much difference to the naturist community anyway.

One thing should be noted; it is the responsibility of those among us who have chosen to provide honest information about our lifestyle to provide that information without regard to the financial consequences to any single entity. Ours is to open closed doors to the light of day, better to examine the dark corners and clean them out. We are here to help other nudist protect OUR lifestyle, not that of those who profit from it.

An obvious parallel is the situation in America today where the moneyed interests control the news media; the public is kept in the dark while our futures are decided by others. Nudist bloggers are armatures and certainly cannot be compared to CNN or Fox News, but lacking anything else, we’re all there is. Without specifics from those in the know, all we can do is keep asking questions. Secrecy is the weapon of tyrants.

I’m not so sure I agree that it’s all about the money. If that were true those moneyed interests would have found a way to fully embrace the “lifestyle” folks for the sake of the almighty dollar. I think there’s a genuine struggle behind the scenes to very carefully map out the best course.

In a way the “voice of AANR” is “damned if you do and damned if you don’t” no matter what they say or don’t say at this point in time. I recall when the “Altogether” was first introduced there were some that accused them of speaking without thinking while others were delighted at the dawn of a new level of communication.

I also think it speaks volumes that neither AANR or TNS have thrown the other under the bus. To me that lends credence to the idea that they really are working together in some fashion which in itself is good news regardless of the outcome of this particular crisis.

I’m sorry if I gave the impression that it’s ‘all about the money’, that was not my intention. That was in reference to the situation out West and AANR’s awkward position of defending/denouncing the actions of one of it’s star member resorts, while at the same time placating its other paying affiliates. Add to that the interests of the general membership and it becomes very complicated, especially without any statement from AANR as to its position in the matter. They’re in a tough situation and dare not talk about it publicly yet the perception of inaction could further affect declining membership levels if folks loose faith in their ability to represent them effectively.

The issue is clouded by different interpretations of ‘adults only’ and where those concepts fit into AANR’s overall ‘family friendly’ stance. There are other resorts that fit into that classification and that affects them as well yet that is of little concern to the overwhelming majority of nudists/naturists in this country who do not belong to AANR OR go to resorts. However, the outcome of this situation could affect naturists everywhere if a legal precedent of any kind is established.

From that perspective, the issue should be very much of concern to the general social nudist population since it has no control over the process and is in the dark as to what is actually happening. Our obligation is to that public, not the membership of any particular organization or the businesses which finance it. To that end we’ll try to remain neutral yet skeptical about just who is doing what for the benefit of whom.

In short, we’ll share what we know and allow others to draw their own conclusions. Well, maybe once in a while we’ll draw some conclusions of our own, but who pays any attention to a little blog from Wisconsin?

And you’re right, it is good that TNS and AANR seem to be playing nice right now. If they can cooperate with TNS supporting naturism in general and public facilities for naturists while AANR tends to promoting its resorts and the legalities of keeping them open, together they may be quite effective. Neither is over-funded so the task will always be difficult. As much as we may complain about their failures in some directions, we’d all be far worse off without them. I don’t see anyone else stepping up and offering to do the job for them!

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